Final Fantasy VII: Temptations
by Rocko Chresington
Summary: Sephiroth is a father! ... Don't believe me? Click this and you'll see for yourself. Sorry the details are a little long, and I tried to cut it short as possible. Prologue and chapter 1 are up.
1. Prologue

Temptations

12.30.06

Version 1.2 - 12.31.06

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This is very random, and the end of the year, almost. It just popped in my head and I couldn't sleep. Alas, I'm writing another Final Fantasy 7 story with a character having kids. Oh, boy. I own Sephiroth's kids... Literally. They're my characters. This story will hopefully be successful... since none of mine seem to be appreciated. Bleh, oh well, I'm trying my best.

I'm imagining a lot of complaints coming out of this one... ha-ha, oh well. Sephiroth is a little nutty, you know.

Prologue is based on the Turks. Skipping it is okay, but if you want to understand chapter 1, please read the last few paragraphs. Agh, I'm sounding too serious... Whee.

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File 0.0: Prologue

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According to a personality, a job or mission is chosen by the most suitable and appropriate decision. This mission required Tseng, Rude, and Reno. It required three Turks for such a tideous and challenging mission. The helicopter ride could be excruciatingly boring, especially when the certain red-head Turk Reno would be singing joy songs incessantly, and the irritating tunes would be reiterating in your head. Sometimes Tseng and Rude felt remorse upon agreeing to bring him along, but sometimes it could be quite useful. At this location and moment, they didn't really care about anything but shutting the man up.

"Reno." Tseng finally said after some tuneless song Reno managed to sing. It hurt as deadly as ear piercing, and their ear drums were going numb.

Reno looked up at the front-seat passengers. "Yeah?" He leaned over the seat, and peered into Rude's sunglasses, and then into Tseng's dark eyes. Reno had a dorky grin, playful and naive, sometimes it disgusted Tseng. The helicopter slackened slightly, and Tseng's pressure subsided, although he had to answer the younger Turk before he went insane.

"Why don't you just count how many clouds you see?" Rude suggested, and Tseng nodded in approval.

"Okay!" Reno smiled, hopping to the window, and he began counting aloud. This annoyed them even more... Why did Tseng even bother? Threatening was useless and idiotic.

-

Corel was a desert prison: residence welcoming tumbleweeds, beggars on the streets, and caravans passing with loads of valuables. Expected weather: sandstorms. Tseng seemed cool and inattentive to his surroundings, and he focused only on his mission. Rude and Reno secretly and passionately wished they were so devoted like Tseng about their job, but it seemed too impossible for them. Rude was resisting the urge to cough as sand dug its way up his nostrils and eyes, even though they were carefully protected behind the shields of the dark-tinted sunglasses. His eyes were hyper-sensitive to light, and with the sunglasses on, he looked professional and stunningly handsome. Reno was gaping, staring and pointing, mentioning every little amusing obstacle he found intriguing. Tseng didn't mind Reno's effort to draw attention, and Rude felt like punching the immature man out.

Rude sometimes wondered how Tseng could wear an apathetic expression, a cool and handsome face, and act as if nothing could go wrong ever, at all times. Reno didn't care about anything but the garish valuables being sold by beggars, infernal cacti, fugitives running around, and prostitutes dancing along the sidewalks to get male attraction. Reno didn't even know what a fugitive or prostitute was... He didn't really care, he just loved traveling with his mature buddies, Tseng and Rude. He just didn't know they were going to tie him up to the back of the helicopter if he continued his behavior.

"What's our mission?" Reno asked, trying to add a hint of actual serious expression, but he couldn't help smiling just a little because of the blank expressions on the two mens' faces. Rude sighed loudly, rubbing his forehead, and Tseng glared with an amazing look on his face. Reno cocked his head to one side, "Um, guys?"

Tseng walked impatiently across the sand as it kicked up behind him. He couldn't seem to find the village... Perhaps they'd gotten lost in the eternal desert. Tseng groaned at this realization, until he finally formed the words to answer Reno's long-awaited question, "We're going to kidnap someone, Reno."

"Again?" Reno immediately bounced back. Rude felt some serious violence rising up within him as Reno got on his nerves.

"Yes, again." Tseng said. His eyes immediately darted to the side, and he pulled out his gun unexpectedly. All Rude and Reno saw were innumerable tumbleweeds crashing down that sandy hill, and some of them getting caught and lodged onto cacti. Tseng lurked like a shadow on the ground. Finally, he noticed this was just a figment of his imagination. It must've been the langurous tone he was taking each and every conversation with Reno, and it was wearing him out.

"C'mon, boss, answer! Answer!" Reno pleaded. "Who are we kidnapping!?"

Tseng's keen eyes spotted the tiny speck of dust that was called the Corel Village. They were much too elevated on the sandy hill... Apparently Reno had given Tseng the wrong coordinates. "Dammit, Reno..." Tseng softly swore to his partner, "Why don't you do your math?" Rude blinked in surprise to hear Tseng say THAT.

Reno giggled. "Heh, sorry, boss..." Reno loved calling Tseng 'boss', especially since it seemed to annoy him. Reno loved the way the nerves and veins popped up on Tseng's hand as he tensed. Reno loved the way Tseng's eyes twitched and sweat trickled down his smooth forehead. Reno loved the way Tseng frowned of antagonization. Reno loved the way Tseng would nearly hunch over from stress. Reno just plain loved annoying serious people... It's fun, admit it!

It was convenient to find the town, but a squander of time to climb down the sandy hill. Reno suggested sliding, and attempted to do so. Reno tumbled down the hill rapidly, and Tseng's anger began to relent, thankfully. He almost seemed delighted that Reno was getting hurt... Just what he deserved. Rude thought it was a little cruel, so he decided to take the slope, too. As soon as Rude went curving up-and-down the obstacles, Tseng expressed a little concern, so he began to scramble down the hill at lightning speed, cussing at every little mishap he did.

Rude was lying on his back motionless by the time Tseng arrived. Reno's head was stuck underneath the sand, and he pulled it out after some struggle. "That was fun!" Reno said. This actually made Rude laugh... mentally, of course. As usual, Tseng couldn't be more frustrated with the youngest male Turk member. He groaned, and began walking straight forward, in the general direction of the village. Rude brushed the sand off his black Turk uniform and followed loyally behind. Reno showed off his cartwheels and lagged behind.

-

They were finally 'here'. Tseng and Rude were the first ones to step inside the old dilapidated house. Reno tripped as he walked in, because of the little step he forgot to take with caution. He ended up falling flat on his face, with a small cut on his shin. He began rubbing his leg, and he immediately took note of the scar. A Turk is always well prepared, even Reno. He took a bacterial sanitizer out of his breastpocket, squirted out some substance onto a cotton ball, and began cleaning the wound, even though it was only an inch long. Reno covered it with a cotton ball, and dressed the wound once like a rubber band. Rude seemed impressed, and Tseng shrugged. It was the basic knowledge of first aid a Turk must know, and everybody knew Reno wasn't a dummy.

Tseng began taking mental notes about this place. The wood floors creaked, and some areas were split, which was quite dangerous to expose children to an environment where floors can easily be destroyed. Tseng cringed at this immediate approach, and the floors were stained with accidents and unknown substances. Tseng didn't want to know what happened here. Rude began coughing at the horrid odor expelling from the floors. Reno turned green, because the rotting smell of vomit perfumed the room. This place was funky!

The overall quality of this small, tiny house - that should be titled as 'crappy broken shed with a cheap coat of paint' - was the conclusion that it was shabby. The walls were dingy and built shoddily. The chairs were worn-out. The draperies were ugly. The ceiling fan was hanging by a sparking wire. The kitchen counters were aged and crumbling away to the touch, practically. This was no over-exaggerated image, this was real.

Reno's meek voice broke the silence of this terrible first impression, "Did somebody die in here?" Tseng and Rude glanced over at him and shrugged simultaneously. That gave Reno the creeps whenever two people, unrelated, would do something at the same time. It was weird to him.

Tseng made a fist, and began knocking the wall with his bare kunckles softly. It was incessant, soft knocking that was agitating Rude and even Reno began feeling a little odd. Suddenly, there was a cracking noise. Tseng looked at the wall, and he had easily dented it. "This place is worn-down." He finally said.

"It's old, it's icky, it's gross!" Reno agreed.

"..." Rude didn't respond to anything they said.

"Come in!" A female voice finally said.

"Why did she make us wait so long!?" Reno groaned, "I hate waiting!"

"The kidnappee - I mean, visitor - is female?" Rude asked Tseng. Tseng inhaled calmly and slowly, and exhaled loudly.

Reno guessed. "I suppose that means 'yes', Tseng?"

Tseng nodded, and they walked forward slowly. They stopped when Tseng gave an ascetic look, "Wait." He said, and rose his tone of voice so somebody could hear, "Is the caretaker here!?"

"Yes! Yes!" A woman came running out, dressed in fancy night-robes, and she reeked of perfume. Reno gagged, and Rude refrained himself from sneezing. Tseng seemed unaffected by everything, as if he was invincible. "I'm the caretaker!"

"Why didn't you come earlier?" Tseng firmly asked.

"Oh, I have a bit of a cold." She replied, and sniffled a tad. Her skin was tanned dark, probably to suit the climate of the blazing sun. Reno didn't like this place, he wanted to go home and get this mission over with. Rude was curious about who they were kidnapping. Tseng had an expression that he was mixing up a special surprise. "Sorry, I was also taking care of the mistress."

"Yes, how is she?" Tseng asked.

"Oh, she's doing better," the woman sighed, "Thank you for asking. She'd be pleased to know someone else cares for her."

"May we speak to her in private?" Tseng asked.

"Oh, yes, yes!" the woman said. "It's been years since we've had guests!" the woman fled for the bedroom quarters, leaving the three men alone to speak.

"Uh, doing better?" Reno was puzzled, and he looked up to lock his glare with Tseng. "Is the 'mistress' sick? Who the hell's the mistress?"

Tseng blinked, and was silent for a while. He closed his eyes, and shook his head. This meant something was not right. "Our boss had a lover." Tseng cut to the chase, and did it cleanly.

"Who...?" Reno asked. Suddenly, he realized what Tseng meant. His green eyes widened, several images and flashbacks flew past him, and his heart began to race. "No way!" Reno looked as if he saw a ghost or far worse. He looked at Rude, gaping, and began cavorting through the room, throwing a hissy fit of surprise. Reno nearly was pulling out his ponytail, he was so stunned. "Sephiroth had a lover!?"

Tseng nodded and confirmed, "He did."

"No freakin' way!" Reno gasped. "No way! No way! No way!"

"Keep it down, they're in the next room." Rude reminded his two companions; Tseng glared, and Reno just apologized simply and then quickly returned to his subject.

Reno pondered, "You mean to say that Sephiroth... held a deep and compassionate love with somebody else?"

"Yes." Tseng said. "He had a lover... and a lovechild."

"Love baby?" Reno asked. "Oh, that's actually pretty neat if you think about it!"

"It is." Tseng said. "And a little wrong..."

"What?" Rude said, and then coughed nervously. He didn't intend to allow Tseng and Reno to know he was listening in on their conversation.

"Why?" Reno asked, "Sephiroth loved somebody and had a kid! That's amazing enough... So why is it wrong?"

Tseng stared out the broken window, the shattered glass dented the view of the scorching desert, and his reflection almost looked grotesque. "... Because he had an arranged marriage before his kid was born. He didn't even know about the kid, okay? He never knew he had the kid with his lover." Tseng explained calmly as possible. "So he semi-agreed to this arranged marriage... and had another kid with this other lady. He's not married now, but that was all dealt with in the past."

"What...?" Reno said. "You mean to say... He has two kids with two different women?"

Tseng nodded, "Yes. Our job is to kidnap the lovechild, not the accidental child."

"Alright, sounds good!" Reno said.

"Agreed." Rude sighed.

"Sorry for keeping you waiting..." the woman said, and her hands clutched the shoulders of a youthful-looking, ravishing woman. The Turks gasped to behold her beauty. She looked like an angel. "Here is the Mistress. Darling, they wanted to speak to you in private." And with that, the woman left in a hurry, coughing and sneezing...

The beautiful mistress. It was no wonder that Sephiroth could've been seduced into her beauty. Although, she didn't look like a snare. Her hair was red and braided, tied off with a ribbon. She wore a long and colorful dress, and her eyes were crystal blue. She stared, and the thing Tseng instantly noticed was her cherry-red lips. They were so luscious and beautiful... It made every man seek to kiss her. They couldn't wait to hear her voice.

"I'm Reno!" Reno blurted out, with a strange, and somehow clumsy, bow. The mistress smiled, and drew in both hands near her face as if to suppress laughter.

"Rude." Rude addressed to himself, with his arms behind his back, and he glared over at the silent Tseng.

"I am Tseng, m'lady." Tseng politely introduced himself with a perfect and courteous bow. This made her smile sincere, and her compassionate soul reveal.

"My name is Falina." the Mistress said with a courtesy. "I'm the Mistress." The Turks were right... Her voice was heavenic, and womanly, but it reminded them very much of a young mother with a newborn child. She would be the perfect mother for Sephiroth's child, and he had certainly made a great chocie.

"Falina, may we see your... kid?" Reno asked.

"Oh, my baby?" Falina asked, and turned around to look into the room. "Aiko, come out here."

The Turks shared a tension moment, as they waited in suspense to see the spawn of Sephiroth. Reno and Rude held hands and gripped tight without realizing they were. Tseng was biting his nails, the deadly and covert habit nobody knew he had. They didn't look at each other, and they stared at the doorway to see what would emerge from it. They expected a little demon boy to flail itself out and terrorize the place - they guessed that's why the place looked messed up.

Instead, their predictions and expectations were all incorrect on this one. A young girl appeared, Rude guessed that she was approximately ten years old. Her enigmatic eyes were what drew the attention of the Turks immediately; they were misty amber, a goldish-orange appearance, but the vertically-shaped, feline pupils indicated that this was Sephiroth's child, indeed. He expected a cold and arrogant child, just as Sephiroth had been as a boy. Rather than that, this child seemed cheerful and bright. She wore a soft smile on her face as she entered the room, but was a little tentative. Her mother had to push her forward in order for her to completely enter the room. Apparently, she was shy and a little aloof.

"This is Aiko," Falina pointed to her beautiful daughter, who smiled gently at the Turks, and bowed politely. Tseng guessed that they had visited many areas, since they used so many different ways of communication and greetings. "Aiko, this is Tseng, Rude, and Reno." Falina had pointed to them and had memorized their names perfectly and flawlessly. This made Reno smile in appreciation, since he was sometimes called 'Rude'. Rude was worshipping the ground because he wasn't called 'Reno' by accident.

"Hello." Aiko said. Her voice sounded content, but not perky or cheerful. It sounded like a mysterious female child, an adorable coo that soothed the senses each time she talked, and it wasn't serious or firm, nor was it lacking emotion.

"We've come for... the girl." Rude broke the news to Falina. The Mistress had actually expected the Turks arrival. She frowned and gave a face as if she had known they were going to arrive from the very start, and she bowed politely once more. Somehow, she managed to curve a smile.

"Tell me, Falina..." Reno said, catching the woman's attention, and she looked at him. "... Why are you giving us your only child?"

Falina gave the sincere and beautiful smile she always wore, and explained, "After Aiko was born, my energy drained and I felt weak. It's the effect of Jenova's cells... From her father, it's in her blood, and the disease is always transferred to the mother, since she carries the child. I never quite regained the lost energy, and I lost my liveliness. I've raised my baby as well as I could, but we often had to travel, since I couldn't afford a house in Midgar to live with her father. He was engaged when I got pregnant... It was terrible. He gave me some money and told me to flee to the Chocobo Farm. Although, Aiko was born in Wutai, and we had to live there for a few months until I could move on. I'm leaving Corel tomorrow, and wanted to dispatch Aiko immediately. I don't want her to live as a beggar with me anymore... She might become a prostitute, and that is my fear."

Reno nodded in understanding... What the hell is a prostitute anyway!? Reno was still wondering... He had no clue it meant such a, well, idiotic thing. He didn't know women were like that; he hadn't been exposed to that stuff yet, and had a lot to learn. Tseng and Rude knew exactly what Falina was saying, unlike Reno, who knew half of the story.

"Tseng. Rude. Reno." Falina called them by name and gave a look of motherly concern. "Take her to her father. I don't care if he's still married... I haven't heard from him for ten years. Ten years! I want him... to know that he had a daughter with me."

"Alrighty!" Reno agreed. "Let's go, Tseng, Rude!" Tseng and Rude nodded, heading for the exit, and then waiting to see why Reno was hand-picked by the President himself. Reno then showed his abilities and outstanding capibilites to communicate with children. He took her hand, and asked, "The name's Aiko, right?"

Aiko nodded, "Yeah."

"Can I call you Ai-Chan?" Reno wondered.

"Sure!" Aiko smiled. Reno liked the fact that he was actually getting along with the evil spawn of Sephiroth. He gave a thumbs-up to Tseng and Rude to say his child-to-child conversation was getting along just fine. Suddenly, Aiko's amber eyes locked a glare into Reno's emerald eyes... They stared momentarily into each other's eyes, and Reno shivered at the narrow, feline pupils Aiko bore. She asked, "Do you know my father?"

"He's our boss." Reno said. That wasn't a lie, and it seemed to amaze the little girl. "Well, he's Tseng's, Rude's, and my boss."

"Did he ask you to come and rescue me from poverty?" Aiko asked with a shy smile.

Reno was stumped. Well, Sephiroth had no clue he had a lovechild at all, and had no clue he even HAD a daughter. _"What should I do?"_ Reno panicked in mental thought. He looked back at Tseng and Rude. Rude shrugged, and Tseng mouthed a message to go along with it. Reno laughed nervously and decided to lie, "Yeah, he sent us to rescue you. He says he's excited to meet you."

It was scary the way Aiko stared at Reno. Her face lit up when she smiled sincerely like her mother, and didn't do it in any immature fashion. The mother and daughter were extremely disconsolate of separating, for they might never meet again. So be it. It was Aiko's destiny. Aiko ran to her mother, and Falina cast her arms out. They embraced each other for a long time. Falina was running her hand through Aiko's silky light-pink hair. Reno thought that Aiko's hair was probably pink because her mother had red hair and her father had silver hair, and everybody knows that if you mix red and silver, you get pink. She was a perfect mixture between both parents.

"You be good now, ok?" Falina ran her thin fingers gently through Aiko's pink hair locks. Aiko smiled and nodded in assurance. Falina smiled, and said, "Good-bye, my child." They hugged briefly one last time, Aiko kissed Falina on the cheek, and took off running to the Turks. Falina softly touched her face as she watched the men leave with her little girl.

"Thank you, Falina." Reno considered saying good-bye, since he felt pretty guilty for taking the girl, and pretty sorry that Falina had to suffer through many pains of being a beggar.

Falina bowed, and as the old, creaky door swung shut, the three men caught a last-second glimpse of Falina's motherly smile.

"Let's go!" Aiko urged, tugging playfully on Reno's hand - finally Reno had a playmate so he could leave Tseng and Rude alone in their privacy!

The three Turks and Sephiroth's lovechild headed to the chopper...

---

**Author's Note:**

Abrupt prologue ending, I know. I just felt a little tempted to write a parenthood Sephiroth story. So many people are doing it, so I decided to help out by writing more of these. They're cool, huh?

Sephiroth had a child with his lover... without even noticing it. He was arranged to marry another woman, whom we'll find out is. He had another child with this other woman, and he didn't even know he HAD a daughter, meaning that the accidental child is a... !!!

Oh, by the way, Aiko means 'love child' in Japanese. Wow, it's 1 AM. I'd better get writing on chapter 1 before I go to bed, so I don't complain of not doing it tomorrow.

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	2. Chapter 1

Temptations

12.31.06

Version 1.0

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This is very random, and the end of the year, almost. It just popped in my head and I couldn't sleep. Alas, I'm writing another Final Fantasy 7 story with a character having kids. Oh, boy. I own Sephiroth's kids... Literally. They're my characters. This story will hopefully be successful... since none of mine seem to be appreciated. Bleh, oh well, I'm trying my best.

I'm imagining a lot of complaints coming out of this one... ha-ha, oh well. Sephiroth is a little nutty, you know.

I need feedback, constructive criticism, something. Click that little review button on the bottom. You know you want to.

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File 0.1: Chapter 1 - Seven Years Later

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Sephiroth was thirty-three years old... He couldn't believe he reached thirty. It seemed like yesterday he was fourteen, a newbie, and yet a hero in the great ShinRa and Wutai war. He was the reason ShinRa had won, and the victorious celebration was dedicated to him. Good old days...

He felt a little lazy, but managed to get up. His eyes were diffuse, and his indolent state seemed to handicap his remarkable abilities. _"I am the Great Sephiroth... I am the Great Sephiroth..." _Sephiroth always had to remind himself that he was a warrior, a legend, and a father. It must've been seventeen years ago when he had a lover, and it was a tearful farewell when he was forced to marry that woman, Jeka. She was Wutaiese and had a temper. He didn't fight a war against the filthy wenches to end up being paired up with one. Hell, no! This was undesirable, and extremely uncalled for. He signed for divorce as soon as she cut off birth control, and was impregnated almost instantly.

Raene... was a blessing, though. Even though that terrible woman, Jeka, kept his son under her custody for five years, he somehow managed to persuade her to give him up. Soon, Jeka abandoned their son to Sephiroth, and he raised the boy since he was five. Sephiroth kept him safe, and was a little overprotective. He hadn't introduced the fighting skills or techniques, because there was an inner conscience telling him not to. Damn conscience. He didn't want his son to be a wussie. He wanted him to be strong, fierce, and unstoppable...

"Hey, Dad."

Sephiroth got startled when that voice called him. It was just his son, Raene. Even though the boy was Wutaiese, his hair was blonde, and tied back in a high-ponytail. His eyes were slanted like a Wutaiese, but his eyes were clouded jadiete with vertically scored pupils just like his father. His skin was extremely fair and smooth like his father, as well. He was usually silent, and when he spoke, his voice didn't match the adorable bishounen facial qualities he owned. The voice he had was deep like Sephiroth's, but a little boyish, because he hadn't really matured enough to be a man yet. He was only sixteen years old.

Sephiroth was really proud and victorious that his ex-wife had deliberately cut off her birth control. He had a living and breathing spawn of himself, Raene. Usually Raene hated to be addressed, and was quiet, but he loved spending father-son time with Sephiroth.

"Raene..." Sephiroth said in a fatherly tone with affection written on his face.

"Stop it, you're embarrassing me." Raene began blushing. "What're you gonna do today, Dad?"

Sephiroth suddenly remembered something important, "Oh yeah!" Sephiroth snapped. "I almost forgot!! I gotta drop something off at Hojo's."

"Right now...?" Raene sighed.

"I'll be back, I promise." Sephiroth kissed Raene's forehead, and headed for the door. "Why don't you get yourself some breakfast?"

"I'll just take vitamins... thanks." Raene offered as Sephiroth slammed the door shut. Raene had an apathetic, serious expression on his face at all times, exactly like his father. He loathed people speaking of him, expect for when his father talked about him... That he did adore. He felt lonely whenever Sephiroth had to rush out like this.

Raene had Jenova's cells in him just like Sephiroth. Jenova's cells had freakish elements that couldn't be found in nature, a substance called Mako, which had to be sucked out of the Lifestream. Spirit energy was what kept guys like Sephiroth and Raene alive. Every week, they had to take Mako injections, which they referred to as 'vitamins' because that's how they were provided for their body types. The injections crippled their abilities as a major negative downside. Sometimes, both of them would be found lying face-down on the floor... Raene laughed silently at the thought.

Raene took the Mako-filled syringe, and decided to try a more painless way. He inadvertently squirted the substance into his mouth, when he meant to do it in a slow process. He gagged when it nearly drowned him, and he tossed the syringe, which bounced off the fridge and landed in the sink, and it was filled with cloudy water. Raene nearly began choking. The Mako substance burned when injected into the veins, but when taken orally, it burned his tongue like crazy. His mouth began glowing green... Oops, that wasn't supposed to happen. His throat began burning, and when the substance slowly leaked into his stomach, it burned like hellfire. He clenched his stomach, hoping he wouldn't vomit... Boys do rather stupid things at times, don't they?

He also prayed that he didn't grow an extra arm, a tentacle, or something nasty. He lacked the sophistication that Sephiroth had, and was quite the troublemaker. He was more a follower than a leader, so when left to do his own decisions, havoc wrecked all.

-

"Excuse me!" Sephiroth said as he pushed through the crowds at the slums. "I just need to get these papers in to Hojo, and he needs to give me more Mako syringes to take home --" He stopped in midsentence when he nearly ran into a beautiful, elegant girl. He gasped when he nearly hit her, and she yelped in surprise. Normally at this position, she'd ram into him, and they'd both fall into the sewage puddle. Sephiroth closed his eyes and prepared for the impact. He felt nothing, and flickered his eyes open to see that the girl had stopped immediately. _"She must have quick reactions..."_

The girl tilted her head as if she heard something, "Uh, yeah, I'm sorry..." She gave a shy smile.

"I almost ran into you, I'm sorry." Sephiroth said. "Oh, I've gotta get to Hojo's --!"

"Wait!" the girl called out and ran forward. She was dressed in ripped clothing, and covered herself in a rag. She was shaking, and dying of hunger from her looks. She was bony, but yet very beautiful. She had pink hair and gorgeous amber eyes, and her skin was soiled with dirt. "I'm Aiko. What's your name?"

"Sephiroth." He blinked twice, and tilted his head... Why did she look so familiar? Her expression seemed to light up with shock and confusion, but yet excitement. "You..." Sephiroth said, but she turned around and ran in the opposite direction. "Hey, wait!" She was gone...

That was strange. Sephiroth had a job to do, though. He needed to get more Mako syringes and schedule his next damn appointment... Ugh, those cursed appointments, they hurt like heck. He raced through the slums, and headed towards the ShinRa building in order to receive more Mako syringes... that stupid word... Mako. Mako, Mako, Mako. If Sephiroth could stab it, he would.

-

"Raene, I'm home!"

Raene was collapsed on the floor, with his eyes darting around, but he was paralyzed -- he couldn't move. He managed to moan, "Daaad..."

"Raene!?" Sephiroth began sounding a little alarmed.

_"Dad, I orally took the Mako syringe... is that a bad thing? Because now I've had an attack of something, and I can't move... I'm on the floor."_

Sephiroth could hear Raene's thoughts, so he could sacrifice words. "Raene, you're on the floor!?" Sephiroth shouted out in horror. He arrived at the kitchen to see the half-conscious teenager pale. "You dummy!" Sephiroth laughed. "You can't take Mako orally, that's disgusting!"

_"It tastes nasty..."_ Raene thought.

"I remember trying that once." Sephiroth said, placing down a paper bag filled with painful Mako syringes on the kitchen counter, and to tease Raene, he'd gracefully step over the immobile boy. "I choked on it... It was pretty funny. Well, Hojo lectured me. He said that if I did it too many times, my stomach would melt... and it can. That's why the painful stabby method is a better choice than never eating again." Sephiroth looked down at Raene, who was gaping slightly, and the boy nodded slowly.

_"Anything interesting happen...?"_ Raene thought.

"Oh, yeah." Sephiroth said. "I met this girl..." Sephiroth gave a weird expression. "I'm not sure where I've seen her from, but she looked vaguely familiar."

"Want me to search for her?" Raene said aloud. "I think the pain's gone away."

Sephiroth looked concerned. "Raene, are you sure you're okay to do something like that after such a strong injection?"

Resolutely, Raene assured his father, "I can take pictures of the girl."

"Wait, do you even know what she looks like!?" Sephiroth called out as his son was leaving.

"Of course I know what she looks like." Raene said, grabbing his father's digital camera, and slamming the door shut. _"I'm half-you, so it's almost as if I've seen her myself."_

Sephiroth smiled. "Ha-ha..." he laughed silently as he began chopping some carrots for lunch.

-

Aiko. The beautiful lovechild of Sephiroth and his lover... Aiko. How could she end up in this position? She was a beggar in the city slums, and she was taken by the Turks in order to find freedom from the beggar's life. Instead of being a beggar with her mother, she got the worser life of being one all by herself ever since she was ten. She wondered if only she had put up a fight and not had agreed to going with the Turks. But no, she was glad she waited seven years... She finally got to see her father. His name was Sephiroth. She saw him that very day. She couldn't believe it! Meeting him face-to-face.

She felt a tingle. Jenova's cells were near. She looked around the alley corners, but instead of seeing her beloved father, she saw a boy that had the glowing aura of Jenova. She frowned in mixed emotions, and took off running with a rag over her head. She crossed through empty alleyways and passages, and she had the quick lightning speed of Sephiroth. Raene sensed the presence of Jenova's cells, too, and felt that weird tingle. He saw the flash of light as Aiko ran.

"Hey, wait!" Raene called out as he ran toward that light. Aiko was running too fast... She was more like Sephiroth than Raene was, and she was older by ten months. Soon, Raene picked up speed and began drifting closer to the swift girl. "This isn't a normal human... Dad said she looked familiar, and I sense Jenova's cells from her. Hmm..." Raene pondered. Soon, he came up with a clever plan. He ran quick enough to walk sideways on the walls, practically, and from an angle, he took a picture of her while she stopped to catch her breath. Aiko glared at the cameraman, and Raene took off.

"You bast --!!" Aiko finished the swear under her breath, growling with ferocity. Raene was terrified, actually. Aiko might be beautiful and sincere, but she's lethal.

"DADDY!" Raene found himself crying out.

-

Sephiroth wondered where Raene had gone. It was time for lunch, and usually Raene would be already there begging for fifteen minutes until Sephiroth would finish making the meal. He looked out the window, and saw the sixteen-year-old approaching, finally. Sephiroth sighed with relief, and went back to pour the stew into the two plates. Sephiroth felt the tingle of Jenova's cells as Raene entered the room, and he smiled softly to himself.

"Dad! Dad! Guess what!" Raene called out.

"Did you get pictures of the girl?" Sephiroth asked, taking a gigantic spoonful of stew and pouring it into his bowl.

"Yeah, it was creepy, though." Raene said, "She has Jenova's cells."

Sephiroth's eyes widened, and he dropped the spoon. "... what?" He said faintly, because he really was about to lose consciousness. Raene loyally rushed to his father's side, and placed his hands on both of Sephiroth's shoulders.

"You okay, Dad?" Raene asked.

Sephiroth was breathing unevenly, and turning pale. "Jenova's cells...!?" He gasped out, and began sulking to the floor.

Raene's jade eyes widened, and he caught his father using his super-strength. Sephiroth was about two-hundred pounds, but Raene saw this as a sheet of paper weight. He easily lowered Sephiroth to the floor, lying his father on his back. Raene placed his hand on Sephiroth's chest, "Dad, your heart's pounding, what's up?"

Sephiroth tried to regain sanity, "A girl with Jenova's cells... a GIRL. A girl, Raene!"

Raene nodded slowly, "Here's the picture. Just... don't faint on me."

"Okay." Sephiroth gently took the picture from Raene and studied it carefully, examining every little detail with the crappy digital camera quality from faraway viewpoint. He saw the look of himself on Aiko. "She looks like me...!" Sephiroth whispered, but his son could obviously hear him say it.

Aiko was a mature Continental girl, about the age of seventeen. She had pink hair that shimmered silver in the sunlight, just as Sephiroth had remembered her from earlier. Her face was adorable, and it looked a lot like him. He took notice of her amber eyes, that came as the appearance of sparkling gems in the desert, and her vertically slit pupils, that matched his and Raene's.

"Dad, look at her eyes!" Raene exclaimed.

Sephiroth gasped. "No way... No way!"

He had a daughter. He had a daughter that was abandoned in the Midgar slums. Midgar was huge, so how could he find her? It was always dark, so it sometimes could be difficult to find certain people. She, in particular, was wearing a rag over her head like most women beggars. It would make her nearly impossible to find in the dark with many other women beggars wearing the same raglike approach. She was beautiful, though, and that was something Sephiroth and Raene could easily get.

"Raene, come eat lunch." Sephiroth demanded. "We'll ask this girl questions later. I might be wrong... I'm a little dizzy from the Mako injections."

Raene sat down at the table, "Yeah, me, too."

Sephiroth laid down the stew for Raene and himself. Suddenly, he felt the urge to put a third plate for that girl he saw... She looked bony and starved to death, yet she was still beautiful with hip-length pink hair. He sighed a sigh that sounded like a growl. _"Just hold on, whatever your name is, girl... I'll come to the slums tonight with Raene. We'll see if you're really one of us there, okay? Just hold on, little girl... My daughter... My possible daughter... I didn't know I had one. How the heck...?"_

---

**Author's Note:**

Ah, my eyes burn!! 2 AM, I had to write chapter 1 so I wouldn't be bugged with the stories stuck in my head all night. I hope you enjoyed it... Because my eyes burn now.

How did Aiko get deserted in Midgar as a beggar just as her mother feared? Sephiroth and Raene to the rescue... Aiko is the seventeen-year-old daughter and Raene is the sixteen-year-old son. Well, Raene's only ten months younger than Aiko, but sixteen years old at the current time, and he'll be seventeen in two months. Kinda complicated, but oh well...

Any questions, comments, or concerns? Review. Press that little button. You know you want to.

Also, Raene is pronounced like 'rain', just in case. Some people might pronounce it 'Ray-neh' if they're trying to do it the Japanese way, but I did a complex English pronounciation on his name. I love owning his character, and Aiko, too, but especially Raene. Ooh, that means Aiko and Raene are half-siblings. Sweet!

I'll write more tomorrow... on New Year's Eve! Happy New Years Eve!

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